Love on the Dance Floor
by Death Noter
Summary: Maddie finally returns from her family visit, and just in time to enter Esteban's dance class before a competition. MADDIExESTEBAN, rating may go up later.  CHAPTER 2, After the Intro, is UP!
1. Introduction

**[Disclaimer: I don't own The Suite Life of Zack and Cody or anything affiliated with the show, but the following piece of writing is by me**

**I'm here to say that this is my very first fanfiction I've ever written and submitted. I hope it's up to par with everything else posted in this section, and that everyone enjoys this piece :**

**By the way, there may be more light pairings later on, but for now it's pure Maddie x Esteban. Have fun reading this short intro.**

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The hotel lobby was packed with several guests, each of them yelling for a piece of decent serving. Naturally, Moseby was flipping out beyond repair for some help from the staff—to his dismay, only Arwin arrived readily, his tweezers snapped in his fists.

"Yeah boss?" he chimed casually, rocking back and forth on his heels.

"What do you mean 'yeah boss'?" Moseby mocked loudly, "Where are all my staff? Everybody here is _freaking out_!" He spat, emphasizing the last two words louder than he should have.

Arwin took a step back.

"Well, yeah, um, let's see," Arwin muttered quietly, "Muriel's sleeping in that couch over there, uh, Lance is away at the recreation center, Carey's in her room watching TV with a bag of chips and she's in that red dress she always wears when she's doing shows on Saturday… nights…" Arwin's voice trailed off as Mosley's eyelids lowered themselves to a glare, "Not that I stalk her or anything, or… hey look! Someone's calling for me aaaand—I better go!"

The way Arwin articulated every word in an unconfident tone led Moseby to lose all hope in his staff. He watched Arwin flee to a direction where his imaginary person had called for him. Luckily, Maddie suddenly burst from the doors, pushing through the crowd of angry people. Her face twisted together in a frustrated look as she approached Moseby, a sigh escaping her lips quietly.

"What's going on here? I left for one second and the place turns into this?" she asked, her hands waving around dramatically. After a second, she continued, "Not that you're doing a bad job or anything… sir." She smiled innocently and retreated to the candy counter, brushing aside the desire for an answer.

Suddenly, the set of front doors opened again.

A bumbling man flew into the air, crashing onto the stairs and forming a hole in the crowd. Giving a short 'ow', he immediately popped back up like no damage was done, speeding like crazy towards Mr. Moseby.

"Oh Mr. Moseby, I am so sorry," he flustered apologetically, "I was out getting the injured man in Room 152 a new pillow." He gestured at the boxed object in his hand after he spoke. He was incredibly close to cursing about said crippled guest, but contained himself humbly.

"Well Esteban, package or no package the state of the lobby is insane, and I need you to hurry up now!" Moseby whined. He paused, staring down at the pillow, which wasn't actually too far from his own height here Esteban held it, "Give me that, he can wait."

Truly believing he deserved the nap, Moseby snatched the pillow hastily and threw himself onto the couch, ignoring the lady reading the newspaper near his feet. Esteban raised a brow, shrugging. The boss always got so worked up every time something like this happened, and honestly, the guy deserved a break. On that thought, Esteban took a second to step to the candy counter, and Maddie's face flushed. Although he didn't notice, she looked down in embarrassment; she knew her face would usually never blush red out in the open like this unless she was _really_ nervous...

"Oh Maddie, I think Mr. Moseby is tired," he commented blankly.

"You think?" She laughed at his obvious statement.

"Well, yes. Maybe, you think he should take a break from work?"

"That seems fair I guess—I mean, I just got back from mine." She smiled as she remembered her trip. Any vacation away from this kind of atmosphere was heavenly, and visiting her aunt was like meeting the complete opposite of nutty Moseby, "Yeah, I think he might take you up on that. By the way, have you seen London? She's been asking me, like, forever with this huge favour thing."

Esteban's gaze suddenly turned to Maddie and for some reason the insides of her stomach tensed into knots. She probably would have repeatedly hit her head again and again to clear her mind, but anymore abnormal behavior today would probably send Moseby to a bed in a mental home.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "Last I heard she was away on trip." On that note, Maddie pounded her fist on the table. "Oh no, it was one of those 'Please can I take you with me to Paris' favours!" she complained, "Like the time we had to go through all that trouble getting 'Employee of the Month' for the trip when she would've taken any of us anyway! Maybe she's still around or her limousine's late!" She hoped selfishly, plotting to grab any chance she could get to have a chat with London. As she rushed on her high-heeled shoes, the corner of the counter stubbed the front of her right shoe and she started to plummet to the ground. Naturally, she tried to grab onto the side of the counter to stop the fall, but she already felt a pair of firm hands pull her up from under her arms.

And there it was again; that feeling of her insides tying up. Esteban's smiling look made her feel kind of quirky and twitchy, as if she had reason to be nervous around him. His hands drove her up to a proper position, and their eyes met for a second or two. She felt herself melt in the gaze; she didn't know why but she would've had the instinct to grab him and kiss him thanks.

'I really don't think that'd be a good idea,' she pondered to herself, turning her gaze elsewhere, 'Ew. I must be nuts. That's totally a bad idea.'

Sadly, her own personal assurance had only enough effect to stop her from doing it, but her thoughts still ran through her head.

"Are you okay?" he asked automatically, the way he always did.

"Oh, yeah, thanks Esteban," she said, curling a strand of loose hair behind her ear and straightening out her Tipton shirt, "I better get going though. Oh yeah—if Moseby wakes up and asks, tell him I'm sick or something." She gave a short wave and waddled off, feeling a small after-shock of stubbing her toe. She knew Esteban was terrible at keeping secrets or telling lies— the guy was way too nice to keep his mouth shut for his own good. However, he shouted after her with assurance in his voice, and a smile crept up on her features.

Almost immediately, she tried to wipe it off.

If anyone caught her looking goofy-faced for Esteban, they'd get the totally wrong idea. Or the right one? Before Maddie's conscience could argue that she was just being loopy, she caught sight of London in the crowd, standing like a clueless idiot. Her fingers were slowly going over the buttons on her cell-phone; it was difficult to tell if she was having trouble texting, or if she didn't know how to call.

"London!" Maddie cried out angrily as a bulgy man that smelt like goats pushed her away, "London!" The girl in question spun her head 'round to Maddie.

"Oh, Maddie! I was looking for you!" she answered, snapping her cell-phone shut without finishing her previous engagement.

"Really? You were just standing there calling someone!"

"I was _texting_ someone, of course!" London said in her usual 'duh, no way' voice, "And _you_ call _me_ slow. Anyway. I guess it's a bit late, but—"

"You want to take me to Paris?" the response came quickly that it completely interrupted the heiress in mid-sentence, "Yes!"

"Uh, no."

"Rio?"

"No.

"…Rome?"

"Nuh-uh."

"Well if it was so important, what is it?" Maddie tried to hide the disappointment

in her voice, but just couldn't. London would have to learn to cope with that, for bringing Maddie's hopes up anyway.

"Well, Esteban had these dancing classes while you were gone, but they're still going on even after he said he'd stop them," she explained quickly. Maddie wished the girl could fit in some gaps for air between the words, "But anyways, he told us there was a Nationals competitiony-thingy and he'd need us to go as his school group. Like last time."

"Last time?" Maddie cut in. She knew London wasn't done, but something snapped and she needed an answer, "You mean, he won while I was away?"

"Yeah, with some partner. A nurse or something, you know, people who work at the hospitable."

"You mean hospital? Never mind… so, what do you want?" she asked. It bugged her that Esteban was off dancing with some floozy girl while she was away… almost as much as it bugged her that London couldn't even say 'hospital'. She didn't know why, but the whole 'other partner' thing definitely got her anger acting up. Maybe she'd always been this way about close friends making other close friends… she was sort of like that kind of kid.

"What else? He wanted you to join to."

The answer came completely unexpected, and Maddie let herself be pushed around like a mop in the crowd, feeling completely out of it. Her? Dance? In front of _Esteban_? She'd totally embarrass herself in front of everyone, and especially him…

"Oh, well, why couldn't he tell me himself?"

"Iunno," London said pushing two words together in a dumb slur, "Busy?"

"But I just saw him seconds before you…" her voice trailed as her head tried to piece together the puzzle. Esteban never kept things from her—heck, he never kept anything from everyone. She'd even caught him babbling life secrets to his pet chicken, Dudley, once, "Okay, well I'll tell him something. Expect me there, and have fun texting… whoever it is in this crowd." She would've added 'Although I have no idea why you'd like to do it here, even considering you have the IQ of a toaster,' but held it in.

"Toodles!" London answered, and opened the phone again, pressing the numbers as slowly as she did before.

Maddie walked away by that time, having headed to the counter and noticing that Moseby was still drop-dead tired and Esteban was out of sight.

"I can't believe it," she muttered to herself, slamming her head on the countertop hard as she could; an action, which of course, would be regretted later when she'd need to take the Tylenol for the headache.

"I just can't believe," she thought silently, "that I'm actually crushing on Esteban."


	2. Peanut Allergy

**Hello, all! I've finally finished this chapter up, and I want to get as much done as I can while school hasn't started yet. Grade 9's gonna be a doozy. Anyways, I'd like to point out that if anyone is finding any hints of MaddiexCody here, knuckle your eyeballs and try and understand that that's the LAST pairing I'd like to write. And obviously, Maddie's not interested in him as I've written it here. Hope you enjoy this. R&R, people.**

* * *

"Yes we will!" 

"No we can't!"

Two small blonde figures stormed down the front lobby stairs, arguing frantically. Luckily, the crowd from before had completely died down otherwise their bickering would've only greatened the chaos.

Moseby frowned, glaring at the twins between squinted eyes. He organized the last file of papers under the desk and walked forwards, raising both brows.

"_What_ is the matter, can't you see that everything was fine until you both came blabbering into my tranquil lobby?" Moseby seethed, "We already sorted out a huge mess, and I don't need another one from you two."

"You'd have thought that after so long, you'd get used to it," Cody mused in reply.

"But what _is_ there to bicker about for so long? Why can't you just get along?" Moseby complained. The two twins looked at each other as if they were seconds from bursting in laughter from the ridiculous idea of 'getting along'.

"Says the guy who got beat up by his midget brother," Zack pointed out, "But this time our argument actually counts for something. Esteban's entering his dance school in another competition, and I suggested that the Codester and I pick up come new chicks. But he thinks we should stick with Bulldozer and Noodle-Arms."

"Their names are _Janice _and _Jessica_," Cody interrupted, articulating the names carefully, "We don't want to hurt their feelings!"

"You mean _you_ don't want to hurt their feelings. _I'm_ the better looking one, so it only makes sense that I spread like peanut butter for all the girls to have a little taste of Zack," he boasted, placing his hands on his hips dramatically, "There's always a lot of me to pass around."

"You spread more like a deadly disease than anything else," Cody argued, "The classes are starting tomorrow, and if you don't apologize to the girls, I'm going to tell mom."

"Sure, go ahead," Zack scoffed. As if his _mom_ scared him anymore.

"I mean it!"

"Okay then."

"I'm gonna tell her!"

"Sure."

"BOYS!"

Moseby's sudden outburst had both the twins step back slightly. He continued, remaining calm as some guests started to give him suspicious looks, "You're embarrassing me, and most of all, damaging the pride of this hotel! Take this argument elsewhere."

"But—"

Moseby squeaked out a few sounds and wagged his forefinger to silence them. The twins sighed, giving up and turning around to head to the elevator, while Moseby stood back at his place behind the front desk. Zack suddenly stopped, stepping up to the candy counter, checking his breath twice and gazed over at Maddie, who was silently reading a magazine.

"Hey there, sweet thang," he said casually, leaning against the counter.

"Zack!" Cody growled, grabbing at his brother's hoodie sleeve.

"In a minute! Can't you see I'm working at my 'Peanut Butter' theory?" Zack muttered through the corner of his lips. Maddie looked up from the page she was reading briefly, her face twisting in confusion for a moment.

"Peanut butter theory?" she asked, ridiculing the name.

"Zack thinks he deserves to be spread around for girls to love and admire him," Cody explained, rolling his eyes.

"In that case, I'm allergic to peanuts," Maddie concluded, "And how many times have I told you, you're too young for me?"

"The same number of times you danced with me at a prom. So I think I still have a shot," Zack smirked, leaning closer to her on the counter. In reply, she shoved a hand and pushed his head away.

"Tough luck, they were pity dances and you know it," Maddie laughed, flipping a page in her magazine. The real pity was that Esteban was too old to have proms and invite her… the way she wanted him too.

"Playing hard to get. This proves she really wants me," Zack said confidently, looking at his brother, "And I have an idea. How about you try and get a girl for the dance lessons (Good luck with that) and I'll go with…"

"Me?" Maddie groaned, "Zack, seriously. I already… I already have someone in mind."

"Like who? _Who_ would you want more than _me_?" Zack boasted, offended. Maddie bit her tongue, stopping herself from giving a sarcastic reply. Her eyes drifted around the hotel lobby, happy that Esteban wasn't there to see her scarlet red face.

"Can't say," she denied him, "But he's older than me." The hint wasn't much of a hint—almost every guy she knew was older than her. But only she knew her heart was yearning for only Esteban. Wait… no. Putting her friendship with Esteban on the line like that wasn't worth it. She didn't want them to go into an intimate relationship… right? "Now, weren't you two in the middle of an argument when you came in? 'Cause it'd help if you just let me continue my job over here."

"What, you mean reading '_Teen Trend Magazine'_?" Cody asked, "I wouldn't mind getting paid for reading."

"Can it!' Zack snapped, "You're embarrassing me. Let's go to the apartment, y'nerd." He dragged Cody away by the ear and the two of them stomped over to the elevator, Cody's loud 'Ouch!'es being audible until the doors closed.

Maddie smiled at the thought of swaying around a dance floor in Esteban's arms, and subconsciously her eyelids drooped down halfway and she was smiling so awkwardly that a lot of the staff began to stare at her. Moseby's face wrinkled itself together in distaste, and he trotted over to Maddie with a very questioning tone, "Are you daydreaming on the job?"

Maddie's fixed eyes soon jumped back to reality, fixed on Moseby.

"No," she laughed, flushing red, "Why would you say that?"

"Because there's drool on the counter," he replied, smirking. He enjoyed watching her squirm for a moment, cleaning up a small pool of saliva off the table with her tie. "Care to explain?"

"Well," Maddie started, her voice wavering, "I guess it's because… I have a problem kind of like Zack and Cody's." There was a bit of an uncomfortable pause, "You might think this is a pretty dumb problem, but I need a dance partner for Esteban's classes."

"Ah!" Moseby said loudly, attracting even more attention from the other people in the room, "I see you've cared to join the classes. No doubt you had the _best_ dancer in the class in mind, _moi_." Moseby sounded so cocky that Maddie let out a small snort, but covered her mouth the second he realized she was laughing at him.

"…Well, uh, yeah," she lied quietly.

"Sorry to disappoint you but this dance genius already has a partner," he said with a hint of authority.

"Too bad," she added quickly, relieved, "But I did have a back-up in mind… but I'm just so scared that I'm not good enough."

"Pish posh, you can't be any worse than the twins! It's really the adults that carry the team," he continued, obviously still referring to himself, "So who's this second option?"

"It's, well…" she stuttered. Dare she say it? Maybe it was a good idea to come clean and act natural, so it didn't seem like she was nervous about it, "Esteban. Yeah."

"Esteban?" Moseby asked, but his tone was straight and blunt, "Of course you two are good friends but he's the teacher, Madeline, he's way off everybody's league."

"Well, yeah, I knew that, but I _also_ know a thing or two about dancing," she said smiling. She made more lies today than she could ever allow herself to before. To her relief, Moseby accepted her lies cluelessly.

"Well, good luck with that," he said casually, his interest now fixed on the customer arriving through the front door, "Welcome to the Tipton!"

* * *

Only an hour later, Maddie was sitting on the couch, enjoying the few moments she had with her shift over. London was sitting beside her, going on and on about a new article in the newspaper dedicated to her. Naturally, Maddie had blanked out the whole way through. London never did notice though, she had always been so dense. 

"…and that's what he said. Of course, I couldn't read the paper myself so I had someone else read it for me," London dragged on, "But you got to admit, I'm really what's hot in the newspapers, magazines and TV. Yay me!" She clapped quickly, and Maddie's thoughts snapped back to reality.

'And I was just enjoying myself until now, too,' Maddie thought. She planted a fake smile and her head turned to London, pretending she was the least bit interested.

"Wow, that's great London. _Real_ great," she said, containing an eye-roll.

"Yeah, I know. But what can I say? I _am_ great!" London clapped again, but stopped suddenly, as a loud ring came from her phone. It rang only once, and she pulled it out. Obviously, it had been studded with jewels. She took a short pause and read what seemed to be a text message, then stuffed away the phone.

"Who was that?" Maddie asked curiously.

"Just room service telling me that I've having a banquet with my favourite chef's caviar," she said airily, tossing her hair back, "By the way, have you asked Esteban to be your dance partner yet?"

"No, I haven…" Maddie cut herself off, "Wait, I just said that I was going to join the classes, I didn't say anything about being his _partner_."

"Don't bother keeping it from me, sister," London said with her own eye-roll, "I dragged it out of Moseby to tell me."

"Right. Well, not that there's anything to hide," Maddie clarified, "Because I'm going to ask him the second I see him."

"Well, why don't you tell him right now?"

"What? Why?"

"Duh. Because he's standing right there at the door."

* * *

**Yeah, that was the best ending I could think of. And it took me up 'till now to think of what Maddie's reaction will be. I'll update soon... -Death Noter**


	3. Excuses

**Finally! I've finished this chapter without any regrets. I tried making it perfect so I ran over it only, like, a thousand times. I'm struggling to keep everyone in character, because nobody likes a confused, angsty Maddie. Well, it's good for a laugh but it's not exactly my aim. Anyways. I hope the romance makes sense, relationships aren't really my thing considering I'm still really young but this will suffice for now. By the way, I hope everyone who's reading this saw 'Loosely Ballroom' otherwise you probably won't get the whole thing about Lance having super powers... plus you missed out on an awesome episode.**

**Thanks LOTS to all reviewers. I'm happy for all the positive comments, and I agree with anyone who hates ZackxMaddie. Underage love...? Eww, people. And WalkingWit, I really hope you're right about me makin' it through the year.**

**Enjoy:**

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Maddie let out a short whine, biting her lip. 

'Me and my big mouth…' she thought angrily. It wasn't fate that had lead her to having to talk to Esteban now. It was her dumb lies and constant failing decisions that did the trick. Of course, London had no idea how uneasy this was—the airhead heiress made lies without a care, for example: lying about being poor, and one time (With help from yours truly) about being a merit scholar to some cute nerd… who eventually became her own boyfriend.

Maddie remembered how that had happened, and the first kiss she had with him in the museum. True, she _did_ date that guy for a long time, but the constant problems he had with tree-huggers eventually separated them for good. Now all that was left of him or any of her old boyfriends was an untouched e-mail contact list. The idea of her actually wanting to get closer than friends to Esteban was also untouched. Until now.

"Hello? Maddie?"

Maddie's head stirred a slow reaction, and she blinked hard before realizing she had zoned out for about two minutes. She turned to London, who gave her an unimpressed look.

"Don't tell me you're shying out of it. It's _just_ Esteban. You know, the guy with a pet turkey," London said.

"You mean chicken? Oh forget it, I can't spend time checking if you've got your animals right," Maddie mumbled, rising from the chair, "And I'm not shying out." She headed to the door, where Esteban was busy talking to Norman, the doorman. Was she supposed to interrupt?

She guessed so, because Esteban discontinued the conversation the second he saw her approach. Her voice began to waver as she spoke.

"Hey, Esteban, you know those dance lessons you're having?" she asked. What a dorky question—of COURSE he knew. It was usually _him_ that stated the obvious.

"Yes," he answered simply, nodding.

"Well, London told me… um," she hesitated, trying to pick out the right words, "God I look so _stupid_!"

…_Definitely_ not the right words, and a poor decision to say them. Was her head screwed on too tight today?

"Don't say that," he disagreed, putting a hand on her shoulder, "You wish to enroll, right?"

At his touch, she felt her shoulder tingle with the heat from his hand, and for a second she froze. Time froze.

For the short moment it was worth, the way they looked at each other seemed perfect… it just seemed right. When he withdrew his hand, she finally realized she still hadn't given an answer.

"Yeah, that's it," she said, trying to relax herself, "But the problem is I don't really have a partner."

"How about Mr. Moseby?" Esteban joked, pointing at the hotel manager nearby. Moseby was setting a leg on the reception desk, doing his usual ballet warm-ups as if he was a kid again. Maddie always did wondered what a mini-Moseby would be like.

"So you mean there's really no one left?" she asked. She was hopeful no one was left but him.

"No," he said.

No? Who was he with then? Or did he think considering her as a partner was a lousy idea and the perfect way to lose? Or was he hesitating?

"But of course, if you are experienced, I wouldn't mind—I mean I'd like it—if you could be my dance partner, Miss Maddie?"

"Well, it's easier said than done," she confessed, hiding her excitement, "But you know, I am a quick learner, and I'd really like to take classes from you. Really." Someone sounds desperate.

"Well, of course, with some work I am sure you might make it to my level," Esteban shrugged, "Then that means you are taking my offer! You'll just have to take extra lessons, see me more than anyone else."

See him more than anyone else… it sounded perfect the way he said it, when you switch the context of it a little.

Best of all, there'd be no annoying London pushing her around to say the wrong things, no more of puny Zack's attempts to win a heart that already belonged elsewhere. Sure, he'd done some great stuff for her before, but SERIOUSLY. Did he ever look in the mirror and realize he was like a ten-year-old blonde mop? The truth tends to be harsh.

"That sounds A-okay," she assured him, "I'll just have a talk with Moseby and we'll sort things out as we go. I'm sure he'll let me off some shifts if I mention he's a great dancer." It was a tactic that never failed.

"Oh, graçias Maddie, I've been meaning to find a partner, it is always a last-minute thing for me," he said smiling, "I have to go, but I give you my thanks. You are a true friend!" He gave her a short friendly hug, clueless about the smile Maddie had plastered on her face over his shoulder.

"Well, I'm always gonna be there for you Esteban," she said, trying to make it sound casual. But she wondered… could he return her feelings? Would he ever want to?

* * *

Maddie stood nervously on the dance floor, staring at her feet. The shoes she had on were all worn out and dirty—she didn't have any proper dancing shoes, she just had to settle with what seemed most comfortable. But she didn't want to look like a mess in front of Esteban, so she wore the nicest thing she had. True, even the mirror in Hat World (Located somewhere in London's HUGE clothing area) said it made her look fat, unattractive, messy, blah, blah, blah, but it was all she had. And she was in no mood to borrow anything from London again; it always leads to favors. 

Her head shot up as footsteps approached the room, and the twins arrived on ample time. They were dressed casually, but Zack was also wearing an extra flirty smile.

"So, you decided to come after all. I knew you wanted me," Zack assured himself, "My girl's dressing all up for me. See Cody?"

"I see delusional idiot and a unimpressed 18-year-old," Cody replied.

"I'm not delusional," Zack argued.

"I didn't dress up for you," Maddie interrupted, surprising even herself with the firm tone she used, "I have a partner, and I need to focus. I really can't mess up."

Zack eyeballed her with a shifty expression. She was definitely rejecting him big time… either he had to try harder or Cody was right. Before he had time to consult with himself, another pair or twins entered the room in blue dresses, approaching happily.

"Hi Zack, hi Cody," they chanted in unison. The boys returned their greetings and as they talked, Maddie started to space out, thinking about how this would turn out.

She knew she had a talent of sorts for dancing, but she was nervous anyway. If this turned out just right, she'd find herself in constant contact with Esteban. But for now, she couldn't mess up. All she could do was cross her fingers.

* * *

Outside of the ballroom, Esteban paced for a while, his head hung down but his spirits still high. Just when he thought Maddie was denying the possibility of joining his classes, she agrees to dance with him. _Him_, that silly Hispanic bellboy who lacked the use of apostrophes when he spoke. He seemed to be in such a high position being the teacher, but he was shy to tears. Maddie was beautiful, smart… the whole package, and could have easily taken any strapping, young American teenager. He felt so humbled and honored. 

Maddie knew that, of course... did she know if he felt anything more?

* * *

After a few moments of more pacing, Esteban entered, smiling in the jolly way he always did. Maddie's clothing ensemble attracted him to look over, but he was clueless as to why she was blushing at his gaze. 

"Hello, Maddie," he greeted her.

"Oh, hi Esteban. I hope I don't look too…" Maddie was about to finish, when London stepped in, arm-linked with Lance.

"Poor? Hideously dressed?" the heiress finished for her, "Oh, wait. I forgot. I meant: all of the above."

Maddie took the insult, making a face but not bothering to retaliate with a comment mocking London's intelligence. Again.

"Girls, chill," Lance said in a monotone voice, "Don't make me use my super powers."

"You already have," London yawned sarcastically, pulling the dumb lifeguard to the side.

"Well… anyways, you look fine, Miss Maddie," Esteban stated, but she was disappointed when he didn't say any more and turned around to face the rest of the class, "Well, we can start now, even if Carey and Mr. Moseby have not shown up yet."

"Oh, wait a minute," one of the British twins interrupted, "Isn't he that funny bald man in the lobby? Odd, I saw him trip over a scooter before I came. It looked like he was really mad."

"Oh, yes, really _really_ mad," her sister added. At that point, Zack turned his head away from facing the crowd. Whoops.

"Well, then, who's mom's partner?" Cody blurted out, his brows drawing together. There was no one left, really, but…

A large scream erupted into the moment's silence within the room, and a blue blur zipped straight through the doors, nearly running over Esteban's feet. It crashed straight into the wall, leaving a small black smudge. Maddie leaned in to see what it was.

"Arwin?" she asked pathetically, her shoulders hunched over.

"Yeah, yeah," came the reply. He recovered from being blown into the wall, rising with difficulty, "I was just testing the hover shoes. It doesn't run on rockets or jet propellers like the last few models so it's pretty hard to control… and it makes a mean space walk."

He demonstrated, moon-walking back with ease—only to knock over a small table and leaving the vase crashing to the floor. The following sounds were footsteps, and luckily they belonged to Carey on high heels, instead of an angry Mr. Moseby on a high temper.

"Arwin, careful!" she scolded, "Sorry we're late Esteban. Moseby got into a little accident…" She took a short moment to look at Zack. "Turns out some kid left his scooter lying by the front desk."

"That's…" Zack mumbled, "That's right. Cody, shame on you!"

"Me? What?!"

"Enough!" Esteban suddenly erupted, his voice sharp with authority. "Let's just get started. Everyone pair up your partner, and we will begin with the warm-ups."

Finally having everyone silenced, Esteban rushed to the stereo and played a CD. Maddie and Arwin were equally confused, but their partners began to start explaining to them. The rest of the class knew the drill.

"Have you tangoed, Maddie?" Esteban asked softly.

"Yeah, but it's been so long, I'm kinda rusty," she said, recalling her dancing catastrophes in youth.

"Well, we start like this," he advised, resting a hand on her back. He pushed her closer to him; so close, she feel his warm breath, and her own breathing began to shallow. He looked so swoon-worthy like this… she saw him almost constantly in his Tipton outfit, and once in an absolutely adorable tuxedo. But, really, he was just so handsome this way, especially up this close. Not to mention she could get as close to him as she wanted at any time and have an excuse for it finally.

But then again, did she really want excuses? Did she want to live her life having to cover up for every little thing she did for him with an excuse? Did she have a reason to? While pondering, she let herself slip out an answer to him.

"Oh, right, I totally forgot," she said nervously as they clasped hands, and she greedily let herself place the other hand on his side, "Have I ever told you I _love_ to tango?"

* * *

**And that concludes the new chapter! The next one will actually have descriptive... ish dancing. I've never tangoed or anything, but I know enough to get by writing a decent chapter. Boy, Maddie loves asking herself questions in her head... -Death Noter**


	4. First Steps To Success

**Alright, I've finally finished this chapter. Keep in mind I had a super hard time keeping everyone in character, and I've been getting lazier by the day so I've been trying to avoid writer's block best I can. School started, and I think I'm gonna get fried in French 10 AP. Being with older kids scare me oO ANYWAYS, I'm going to stop treating these author's notes as a diary and let you read. Hope you enjoy, I worked like forever to write this:**

* * *

Every movement Maddie made with Esteban was breathtaking. Somehow, she knew Esteban was enjoying it as much as her. The seriousness of learning steps mixed with the joy of being around one another blended into a dance neither of them had to think about—they felt it, together. 

As the class droned on, Esteban barely took the time to remember anyone else in the room—he was so focused on her that she simply melted at the thought of getting so much attention… She wanted this more than he knew, and it was unclear if he'd ever find out. But nonetheless, everyone had their share of trying new songs. Carey was having an absolutely impossible time with floppy Arwin and his ship-shod ways. He tripped over her feet, his own feet, the wooden floor, and he was flying around so much one would have thought they were doing a ballet on acrobatic wires. Lance seemed more interested in the idea of flopping around like a fish than actual moves, and London… was more interested in herself and the nearby mirror than anything else. The twins did as they usually did, Zack was even too frustrated noticing how happy Maddie seemed that his own dance moves became either harsh or loose and sloppy at times. Other than that…

"We're doing great!" Cody exclaimed, watching his feet carefully, "And I haven't even tripped once!"

"Some would say different," Arwin's voice pointed out. He spoke crouching on the floor, recovering from another fall, "Sorry Carey, it's just these boots are so darned…" He trailed off, banging at the boots irritably. At that second, something inside the mechanism backfired and he flew backwards, hurtling towards a desk. Carey didn't even turn to see the damage that was done, the sound seemed extremely painful enough.

"I'm okay!" the inventor's voice rung.

No one replied to him.

"Wow, Arwin can fly," Lance said, "You know, flying fish can cover a distance of over…"

"Wait, fish can fly?" London interrupted.

"Well, technically not really but they're in the air. So like, air's the opposite of water. And flying is like, the opposite of swimming. Y'know?" Lance explained.

"Oh, well, good, because I've been meaning to find someone to fly my new private jet, I just fired the last guy. His clothes never match," London answered, "Yay fishies!"

Even Lance shot her a confused look, and everyone was silent, watching the girl clap repeatedly… Maddie tried to change the core of Esteban's attention, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Anyways… this is going great Esteban," Maddie said, "Where'd you learn to dance like this?"

"In my country, dancing is a must, we can all dance like this," he answered, his face flushed with pride.

"Well, in this country, you're really great," she praised, " So, what's next?"

The bellhop gave a thoughtful look before prancing to the stereo, stabbing at the 'Forward' button and skipping a few songs. Maddie leaned in on the front of her feet slightly, her ears expecting a soft, romantic medley of music to drift around the room and the two of them controlling the dance floor gracefully holding each other around in their arms to the music. But no. An upbeat song, completely fit-for-peppy-Esteban song came on, and Carey gave a frightened expression as if she was about to get bricked. With luck, Arwin wouldn't destroy the whole floor.

"Ooh, this sounds really fun," Jessica pointed out.

"Really, _really_ fun!" Janice echoed. The boys agreed with their partners automatically.

"Not to mention my feet aren't blistering from these shoes, they're awful," Cody pointed out. He shot his mom a suggestive look.

Esteban ignored all the comments and sped back to Maddie.

"This one is harder, but since the others have reviewed this, we'll start with simple steps and go from there to catch you up," Esteban said, "But you have really improved in such a short time Miss Maddie."

Please, just call me Maddie. But she said nothing, nodding humbly and plastering on a smile.

Maddie took in the advice he spoke to her as they went, following each step with care, but also loosely letting their synchronized moves go wherever the music let them. Maddie let herself get lost in the rhythm, her feet shifting along to the beat carefully. Looking up at her partner, she suddenly saw a side of him she never noticed—when they were actually starting into some real dancing, his face was fiery, fierce almost, and every move he made seemed to come so naturally. But this was probably nothing more than a hobby of his he wanted to share with friends, and she could probably never convince him to think more of it. She was just that shy, cute candy counter girl who was going way in over her head. Why would he want _her_?

* * *

The brilliant weather outside in Boston came clear through the glass doors of the Tipton. Maddie admired the sunlight beaming through the clean glass, screaming for her to come outside and enjoy herself for once. But she knew it'd be the last thing she could ever do; Moseby's scooter accident gave way to his anger opening itself up to be tripled. She hadn't showed up from class after four hours, as did Esteban. They had stayed together for so long in there that they ended up having to both suffer the punishment of recovering 2 and a half missed hours worth of a shift. After Moseby's typical staff-scolding session, he sent them to recover precious time and money right away. Well, as they say, time _is_ money. 

She watched as the doors suddenly opened, letting in a breeze of fresh-air from outside. Several bellhops entered with loads of shopping bags, and she expected London to come in with Ivona at any time. She spotted the spoiled girl waving her purse around as she walked, suddenly stopping to chew her gum, then continue walking. Maddie took the brief pause in London's steps to wave her over. London spotted the greeting, and stood there dumbly for a moment.

"Hi. I'm rich!" she called, waving. No duh.

"No, London, just come here for a second," Maddie explained impatiently. The heiress scurried over.

"This better be good, I have a whole line of clothing just waiting for little me, back from Paris," she said, reciting her usual line.

"Well, I'll make it quick then—fish don't fly planes. They _fly_," Maddie said, flapping her arms around weirdly. London argued with a dumb comment, and Maddie started to completely wave her arms around, hopping around the counter in mockery. By the time she realized she was standing on the table, tipping over the vase, she saw Esteban staring up at her with a 'on the verge of breaking down from laughter' look.

"Maddie, what are you doing?" he giggled. Her face was probably so red it could've doubled as a traffic light. She was so nervous she completely flipped off the table, almost toppling the whole thing over. As she fell, Esteban attempted to catch her, but his hand couldn't support the fall. As they tumbled over, fearing the loud angry screams Moseby was giving out, they're lips met for just a second, and Maddie didn't regret the pain to follow at all. The same sensation of the world stopping for them occurred in her mind… if it wasn't just an embarrassing accident, she would have held it more than she did. After that thought, it was just the pain of body-meeting-floor. Did she just use Esteban to break her fall? She looked down apologetically, biting her lip. Yup.

She got off of the bellboy quickly, trying to help pull him up.

"Oh my gosh," she said quickly, slurring it with concern, "Are you okay?"

The man in question rose slowly, chuckling nervously.

"I am okay, Miss Maddie," he said beaming, "Sorry I could not catch you…" He rubbed the back of his head, ruffling his dark hair. The hat never really did double as a helmet.

"HELLO, are you two even _listening_ to me?! Clean up this mess!" Moseby declared, waving a hand between their gazes. Maddie gave a jumpy look, immediately running for the corner of the carpet rug and straightening out the creases she had made. Of course, the whole time her mind wasn't where it should have been. She was thinking she probably wouldn't wear lip-gloss to cover her lips for the next few days… and she should probably get a pedicure and treat herself. Anyways.

"Sorry Mr. Moseby, I was just… demonstrating aerodynamics," she said, smiling helplessly. The manager growled in a low tone, leering at her as he retreated back to the front desk, "That was close."

"_Really_ close."

"What, London?"

"Nothing. I'm rich!" the girl waved.

"Speaking of money," Maddie added, "Esteban, why exactly are you signing up for the competitions? Is Moseby getting on your nerves or is it just everybody else who's getting that feeling?" She laughed, making sure to cut the volume down slightly as Moseby passed by with a deadly glare.

"No, I need to pay for my uncle's home," Esteban said shrugging, picking back up his hat, "Because _somebody's_ ultra rich dad sued my uncle of all his money and demolished his ranch." He shot London a short look of disapproval.

Obviously, she didn't get the message.

"Those darn rich daddies," she agreed with a nod, pouting. It took seven seconds for her to react again, "Hey, wait a minute, you were talking about—"

"SO," Maddie interrupted loudly," I guess that means winning this is important to you, huh?"

"Very, I think'd I'd live my whole life down if I couldn't do this for… well, as they say, for my loved one," he said solemnly. Wow. He sure loves that… ranch.

"Well, I'm sure we can win. Of course, after we finish with this whole working overtime work thing," Maddie said with an eye-roll, "Okay, so, you doing anything right now? Break's in five minutes, and it only lasts five minutes so… I wanna make the best of it." She paused, "I mean, you know, with a friend and everything."

He nodded, "Okay, five minutes then?"

It was like meeting up for a date… except it'd last as long as a badly-written love song. She nodded in response, watching him leave until he turned a corner.

"Oh hey, Maddie," London added loudly.

"I know, you're rich."

"No, no… well, yeah. It's actually something that's all important and stuff," London confirmed. Maddie couldn't help but feel this was going to be one big, stupid question… or remark if she could make it.

"What?"

"Um, I need you to switch with me."

"What?!"

"I said, I need you to—"

"No, I mean… why?!"

"Lance isn't ready, and I deserve to win more than you." She added a confident nod.

"What? I mean… I desrve it as much as you do, but what do you mean he's not ready? It starts in a month. And I'd _never_ switch partners, I lo…" Maddie cut herself off with a disturbing gag sound, appalled at how close she was to confessing, "I loathe having to learn dancing with new partners."

"Is 'loathe', like, the smartirific way to say 'loaf'? You know, the piece of bread thing?" London asked suddenly, waggling a finger.

"…London, how can I 'piece of bread' having to learn dancing with new partners? Forget it—why are you worrying? We have a lot of time left anyways, we have three weeks."

"What? Okay, even _I_ know we only have three _days_."

* * *

**And of course, we can all imagine Maddie now: "thud". I _would_ have her faint if I knew how to write it without humiliating myself. I think the deadline for the next chapter would be by 11:59 PM (hah, last minute) September 8th. -Rolls up sleeves- Here I go... -Rolls 'em back down- but I've got science homework first... Where's Cody when you need him to be real? -Death Noter**


	5. Sketches And A Frilly Dress

**Woo. Totally handed in late (the 8th was deadline?), but I won't even bother with an explanation because you wouldn't believe the hell I've been through. With any luck, I'll live through the next few years. Anyhow, I'm finally done. I went over and over and OVER to get the characters right. This chapter focuses on mainly Maddie and Esteban. No one else, except for London who's just there 'cause... well, I dunno, comic relief? And a one-liner including her chauffeur. That's about it. But, obviously, I will have the characters make their big re-appearances in the next chapter. All of them. 'Cause don't you just miss 'em?**

**Again, I repeat, I tried extra hard to keep everyone in character, so if anything is totally OOC... the evil monkey in my closet did it.**

* * *

Maddie's jaw dropped a mile, and her eyes widened like dinner plates. Three _days_?! She couldn't even try to memorize _Dance Dance Revolution_ steps, let alone a _real_ dance, in that time. What was Esteban thinking? Better yet, she wondered why he told it her it was three weeks away. Either London was being stupid, or Esteban was forgetting most of his limited vocabulary. 

"Wait, are you sure?" Maddie clarified, taking deep breaths.

"Uh-huh," came the reply.

"Swear to god?"

"Why would I swear at him?" London shrugged, scoffing. Maddie slapped her forehead irritably, turning away. That conversation had passed by so slowly that she only noticed five minutes had passed when Esteban came strolling down the stairs. He skipped through the gap between the couches and stopped quickly, smiling.

"What are you talking about?" he inquired nosily. Maddie flashed him a dark look, and probably would have hit him with a barrage of complaints if she didn't love him to pieces.

"What else? The lessons. And the deadline." She emphasized on the 'dead' syllable.

"Deadline? Oh, si, three weeks," he nodded.

"Esteban, how long is a week?" she checked.

"24 hours."

"Oh, you birdbrain!" she sighed, grabbing at the front of his uniform and shaking him lightly, "I can't believe you're not panicking about it and leaving me to be the one stressing out!" She couldn't bring herself to be actually angry, though, staring into his eyes like that. She didn't even come to realize she was right against his chest, if she had, she would've probably 'pulled an Arwin' and fainted.

Esteban quickly, yet gently, forced away her grasp, shaking his head slowly.

"Oh, there is no need to worry!" he clarified, "You are a goddess on the dance floor. I should know better than anyone else. Si?"

She gave a short moment of thought.

"Well, yes, but…" she trailed off. Did he call her a goddess? "Well, all we've practiced thoroughly when everyone else left was the tango."

"Like the fruit?" London interrupted.

"No, that's a MANGO," the blonde said sharply, drawing her brows together, "Are you and Lance even ready?"

"No," London said quickly, like it didn't even matter to her in the least, "But as long as I'm wearing what's hot and new, my face will make it on the front page of every magazine. And that's what makes a winner, right?"

"That's the most naïve thing I've ever heard. Anyways," Maddie carried on, facing her back towards London, "Are you totally sure?"

"I wouldn't lie to you," he assured her, with a pat on the shoulder. She had heard that line so many times with her past relationships, and it always got old and overrated. She couldn't help but believe _him_ though.

"Right, right," she said casually, "I guess… we have to just go at with a little more practice."

"I look forward to it," he added. He opened his mouth to say something again, but a sharp ring split into the moment's silence between them, and Esteban turned his head quickly, uttering, "Moseby." He left without another word, scurrying over to the front desk like an obedient puppy.

Maddie took a moment to smile to herself, retreating to her own counter. Now that London had left during the conversation, she could continue with her dreamy stares across the room without being noticed. She had also been meaning to talk to Carrie about everything too, but always changed her mind. Would Carrie understand the situation? She was a divorced woman who had a nerdy hotel engineer chasing after her; though Maddie was just this cute, yet educated, blondie who was crushing on some South American guy whose best friend was a chicken. Then again, Carrie was like an older-sister to her. Maybe she should speak up about everything sooner or later. She finally decided to take that course of action, and then set her attention to a nearby notebook. It contained several scribbles of notes she had taken about the different dance moves they had tried. She even sketched out a few sample drawings of them together… she was no artist, but her heart nearly jumped out of its place when she stared into the soft lines she drew of them so close, loving each other. She couldn't help but giggle and daydream all afternoon… especially after he had _finally_ confessed that she was his goddess after all.

* * *

Three days later… 

Maddie stood impatiently in the ballroom, tapping her foot to no rhythm in particular. Where was he? The last thing she wanted was for him to have forgotten. But apparently, that seemed to be the case. He was fifteen minutes late for the final practice.

She stood around for a little longer, deciding to sit on the nearby cushy-chair until he arrived. Naturally, she was bored out of her mind, and pulled out the notebook for the hundredth time. Tracing her finger along the pages, she took a moment to take in her feelings. Soon enough, she found herself hammering away at a new sketch, this time it was purely Maddie and Esteban off who knows where just hanging out. The various random locations weren't the main issue of her focus—it was the fact that they were together. She was in the middle of drawing a romantic scene, when a sharp pain on her toe erupted. Hollering, she dropped the notebook straight on the floor, the fallen pencil rolling away from her feet as well. She looked down to see what was wrong, and sure enough, Dudley was there, biting her dancing shoes with gusto. She growled, almost slapping the chicken silly when Esteban walked in. Just as quickly, she changed her gestures and petted the little beast, forcing a smile.

"Dudley!" Esteban exclaimed. He threw his arms around to shoo the pet chicken away, and it worked after a while's worth of biting. Maddie held in the pain, still pretending to be happy as ever. Of course, she would've loved to tear the little fuzz ball to pieces if Esteban wasn't so attached to it, "Oh, I am sorry Miss Maddie. Mr. Moseby rang the bell, and asked that I… oh." He stopped, picking up the nearby pencil and notebook. Maddie reacted quickly, shooting up at bullet-speed and blocking his view of the pages. She hoped he didn't see anything before she pulled it away.

"It's… my diary. Yeah. You know, gotta keep it secret and everything," she chuckled as he handed her the pencil, "Otherwise it wouldn't be much of… a… never mind. Let's get started."

"Of course," he replied. He turned to take the chair, and Maddie took the time to consider the notebook and stash the stupid thing away. She should've left the it somewhere else that was more chicken-proof… stupid chicken.

When they finally began to get to things, her mind raced quickly. This was the last practice before they would leave, and the last thing she felt in her heart was confidence. _But she couldn't let him down…_One, two, three, and the foot crosses over there… _she wanted to make him happy, more than anything…_Release, spin, return to his arms… _she never wanted this to end…_ Another spin, two, three… _and yet she was tired of making excuses. She wanted him to know what she felt._

And without thinking, without even the slightest hesitance, she leaned in halfway into the song and kissed him.

She held it for a number of seconds, her slender hands placed on his broad shoulders, and she felt his stiffened posture suddenly break. She broke the kiss off slowly; the music was still blaring loudly, but no dancing was happening at all. As far as she was concerned, no breathing was happening either. They both stared at each other blankly, too shocked to breathe. He looked happy for just a moment, then dazed, and the rest was hidden under something she couldn't read… what had she done? She'd always thought… in all the movies, the shocked boy would suddenly return to the expecting girl, giving her another passionate kiss, the way she would have loved for it to have happened. But no. This wasn't a movie. Esteban had walked straight out of the room.

* * *

That night finally came, and Maddie sat waiting in London's limo that was slowly going through the traffic. She sat uncomfortably, and not because of how ugly and frilly her dress felt. But because of the whole incident in the afternoon… Esteban wasn't talking to her. He'd exchange a weak smile once or twice, but otherwise he still seemed to feel the after-effect of the spontaneous kiss. They didn't even get to finish practicing… and the most awkward thing was that he was sitting right next to her in the limo, in all the silence. London was sitting up front, rambling on to the chauffeur about the stuff she had bought, and him nodding his head as if he even cared in the slightest. Maddie's eyes then shifted to Esteban, who looked out the window boredly. Should she say something? Tap him on the shoulder? 

She tried opening her mouth, but the second he turned his head towards her, she shut up and looked as though she was asleep. She just couldn't get over how she had 'ruined' the afternoon. But she did what her heart had lead her to… how could she keep it in for so long? They were such close friends, and it was undeniable that they would get along in any kind of date. But she was too shy, and he was so clueless about it… until now. With her feelings exposed, she knew there was only one thing to do—hope the dance would work out, win the thing, and then he'd probably want to forget it for the rest of his life. It was how things worked, and she realized that right after he left her alone again in the ballroom. He didn't _want_ to return her feelings.

When she was about to raise her head to say something, she felt a nudge on her shoulder and turned her head.

"What… oh,!" she asked, then whispered. Esteban had fallen asleep, and his head was resting lightly on her shoulder, his posture leaning towards her. It was probably the restless nights of figuring out the dance choreography that made him pass out. She couldn't have felt happier of the current position, if only the day had passed by differently. She smiled, checking twice to see if he was really asleep, then began talking to the thin air.

"I shouldn't have messed up, I don't know what I was even thinking… at least I _can_ think, unlike a certain spoiled girl I'd like to mention," she mumbled, "And now we're finally here, seconds from leaving the car doors and facing expert dancers in the Nationals competition. Not to mention you don't even want to talk to me. But I'm sure winning this will make you happy, I mean…" Maddie stopped quickly, seeing London pull down the screen dividing the two sections of the limo.

"We're here. Let's get out, I've got a competition to win!" London said enthusiastically, and the doors automatically popped open. There was a small crowd outside, but most of them were just lining up to get inside. Others were just a few press members snapping random pictures. Maddie quickly nudged Esteban, and the man woke up quickly, his eyes flickering open. He suddenly popped up like a mole when he realized he had been leaning against her, and straightened out his shirt, blushing red. Aww.

"Oh, sorry, I… let's go," he huffed, exiting the limousine. She followed suite, her blunt expression not changing as she walked past the crowd huddled outside the building doors. For all she knew, they were the first pair up, and they weren't ready. She felt terrible, but expected herself to take the winning prize money for him.

And with that thought, she entered the building with a damaged confidence, a frilly dress, and a broken heart.

* * *

**I ask you to forgive me for the totally-uncalled-for "Awww" near the end. But just imagining Esteban like that makes me squeal. And I never squeal in any other circumstance. Ever. Except when I saw that drawing of an emo cupcake... poor thing. ANYWAYS, I hoped you enjoyed that, there's more coming. This story's gonna be short, so expect, like, another chapter. Or two. We get to work on Fanfictions in English apparently and so i get time to do this... yeah, okay, maybe two chapters then. By the way, I skipped two days in the storyline because if I tried to type them, as I did, they'd look exactly like the last chapter. Seriously. -Death Noter**


End file.
